Electric switch for bowling alleys



July 23, 1935.

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iatented July 23, was 2 t09,2fi

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EEEGTRIC SWITCH i flht BOWLING ALLEYS Arthur E. James, Auburn, R. i.

Application .i'une 1%, i932, Serial No. 516,820

1 (Claim. (Cl. zoo-s5) This invention relates to an electric switch for in a chamber it provided in the body portion of bowling alleys, the object of the invention being the casing t. The upper edge MB of the flange it to provide a switch of novel construction adapted touches the adjacent edge or the orifice ill in to be electrically connected to a suitable device which the flange i6 is positioned and the pe- 5 Winch will indicate when all of the ten pins are riphery of the flange it is bevelled inwardly 5 correctly positioned at the lower end-of a bowlwhereby a clearance space 2i is provided between ing alley and, furthermore, to indicate, when a the flange l6 and the casing 5, so that dirt or play or plays have been made, how many and dust from the upper face. of the casing or from which ones of the bowling pins still rem'ain the upper face of the bowling alley may pass lo standing. downwardly into the chamber is and thus the 10 To these ends the invention consists in an support 9 can always be brought back by the electric switch for bowling alleys as hereinafter spring il to its normal position, that is, with described in the specification and particularly its upper face flush with the upper face of the pointed out in the claim. casing 8 and that portion of the bowling alley 5 Referring to the drawing: adjacent thereto. 15

Fig. 1 is a plan View of a portion of a bowling The lower end of the shank 55 has a plug 22 alley with ten of the supports for bowling pins of insulating material fixed therein and a conand their respective casings indicated therein. tact plate 23 preferably of phosphor bronze is Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional elevation taken fastened by a screw 24 to said plug 22 and thus on the line 22, Fig. 1, illustrating an electric to the shank 55 of the support 9, the plug 22 20 switch for bowling alleys embodying my inventhus forming a part of the shank I5. One end 25 tion including one of the bowling pin supports, of an electric wire 26, forming a part of an elecits casing, and a portion of its electric circuit to tric circuit, is clamped to the contact plate 23 by the lamp. the screw 24. Another contact plate 23 is posi- 25 Fig. 3 is an enlarged underneath plan view of tioned beneath and in alignment with the con- 26 the bowling pin support and its casing, together tact plate 23 and is fastened by a screw 21 to an with the contact plates whereby the electric cirinsulating plug 28 which is fast to the bottom of suit is closed or broken. the body portion ll) of the casing 8. The screw 21 Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional elevation taken clamps the other end of the wire 26 to the con- 30 on the line 4--4, Fig. 3, and broken away. tact plate 23'. The wire 26 forms an electric Like numerals refer to like parts in the several circuit in which is introduced an electric lamp views of the drawing. 29. In order to accurately position the support In the drawing, referring to Figs. 2 and 3, 5is 9 is its normal position and to prevent the same a portion of the bowling alley floor consisting'of from rotating so that the contact plates 23 and a wooden portion 5 and a top panel I. B is 26 will always be positioned in proper relation 35 I a casing for a bowling pin support 8. to each other, the. shank l5 of the support 9 is The casing 8 consists of a cylindrical'body por-, prevented from rotating by a looped wire 30, the tion 10 providedwith an annular shoulder H opposite sides 3! of the loop 30 engaging oppoand three ears |2 projecting radially outward sitely disposed transversely extending slots 32 40 from the body portion ill of the casing. These in the shank l5. The free ends 33 of the looped ears are of suilicient thickness to project through wire engage opposite sides of a boss 34 which exthe panel I forming theupper surface of the tends downwardly from the bottom of the body bowling alley 5 and into the wooden portion 6 portion In of the casing 8. thereof and are fastened firmly in position by Some bowling pins are heavier than others and means of screws 13. The casing 8 has a boss l4 therefore it is necessary to provide means for 45 projecting upwardly from the bottom thereof and regulating the resistance to depression of the forming abearing for the shank l5 of the supsupport 9 by the weight of the bowling pin resting port 9/ A flange 48 is provided at the upper thereon. To regulate this depression or, in other end of the shank I5 and is normally supported by words, to increase or diminish the upward spring 50 a spring l"! in the position illustrated in Fig. 2, action on the support, a fiat spring 46 is provid- W that is, with the upper face of the flange of the ed in addition to the spring ll as illustrated parsupport flush with the upper face of the casing ticularly in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. Said fiat spring 4% 8 and also flush with the upper face cf the is fastened at one end rigidly to the bottom of bowling alley or of the panel l adjacent thereto. the casing 8 by a screw il and adjustably fas- The spring i! encircles the boss i i and is located tened at its other end by a screw 48 to said cas- 55 the pin holder.

ing. The spring 46 is slotted at 49 to receive the plug 22 which forms a part of the shank of The spring 46 bears against the bottom of the metallic portion of the shank i5 so that by adjusting the screw 48 more or less pressure may be brought by the spring 46 against the shank is of the holder 9 to regulate the resistance to depression of the holder according to pins of diiferent weights that may be supported thereon.

It will be seen that when the parts are in the positions illustrated in Fig. 2 and the springs ill and 46 are holding the support 9 in its normal position that the looped wire 30 will abut against the bottom of the body portion ID of the casing and when this is the case the top surface of the support 9 will be flush with the top surface of the casing 8 and of the bowling alley floor adjacent thereto. I

The operation of the device hereinbefore specifically and to some extent in general described is as follows:Assuming a pin 50, partly indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, to be positioned upon one of the supports 9. The upper end of the support 9 it will be understood is of a width not less than the diameter of the lower end of the bowling pin 50 to be placed thereon. When the bowling pin is placed on the support 9, the springs I1 and 46 will yield and the support .will descend sufi'iciently to cause the contact plate 23 to engage the contact plate 23' which previously were separated by a slight distance. As soon as the contact plates 23 and 23' are in engagement the circuit through the wire 26 will be closed and the lamp 29 lighted, thus illuminating its respective numeral from 1 to 10 as the case may be of a suitable indicating device .for which the switch mechanism of this invention is provided. Assuming that the pins 50 are placed in position upon their respective supports then all of the numerals 1 to 10 of the indicator will be illuminated. This indicates to the player that all of the pins are in position. After a play has been made and certain pins knocked over and removed from the alley, their respective supports will return to their normal positions illustrated in Fig. 2, thus the electric circuit of each of these supports which have returned to their normal positions will then be broken and their corresponding lamps put out, leaving only those numerals of the indicator illuminated which correspond to the pins which have not been knocked over and removed from the alley.

I claim:

An electric switch for bowling alleys having, in combination, a casing, a spring-actuated sup port for a bowling pin comprising a shank slidable vertically in said casing and a flange on the upper end of said shank of a width not less than the diameter of the lower end of said bowling pin, a positioning member on said shank comprising a resilient looped wire engaging the flat surfaces of a pair of oppositely disposed transversely extending slots on said shank, whereby the support is prevented from rotating, the free ends of said positioning member crossing each other and engaging a stop on the bottom of the casing, said wire engaging the bottom of the casing when the support is in its normal position, an electric contact member on the lower end of said shank, and an electric contact member positioned beneath and in alignment with said firstnamedcontact member.

AR'IHUR E. JAMES. 

